Bowles/Irwin QUESTAIR VENTURE N65V

Summary

On 9 July 1996 at about 00:30 local time, a Bowles/Irwin QUESTAIR VENTURE registered N65V, operated by Wayne Irwin, was involved in an accident near Groveland, California, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

9 July 1996 at 00:30

Classification

Accident

Location

Groveland, California, United States

Nearest airport

Pine Mountain Lake (Q68)

Coordinates

37.8490, -120.0097

Aircraft

Bowles/Irwin QUESTAIR VENTURE

Registration

N65V

Category

Airplane

Engines

1

Operator

Wayne Irwin

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

LAX96LA269

Nobody was injured.

the pilot's failure to maintain directional control while landing in a crosswind. A contributing factor was related to the airplane's steering/handling characteristics.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The pilot of the experimental, amateur-built airplane, reported that his landing and initial rollout on runway 27 was uneventful. However, as the airplane decelerated he lost directional control. According to the pilot, he applied left rudder pedal and 'a little' left brake pressure to correct his alignment, but the airplane did not adequately respond. He further stated that he then 'made the mistake of moving the steering lever' to redirect the airplane, and he 'over controlled.' At this time, the airplane veered toward the left side of the runway and the pilot turned the steering lever to the right. The pilot again over controlled, and the airplane veered right exiting off the right side of the runway and into the ground. He further reported that he believes the design of the airplane was faulty in that the nose wheel was constructed too close to the main landing gear, and the three wheels formed an equilateral triangle. Also, the nose steering mechanism allowed too much play, and the airplane's steering was sensitive. In a crosswind, the weathercocking force allowed the nose wheel fork to turn and angle the airplane toward the edge of the runway. At the time of the accident the wind was from 290 degrees at 8 knots.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.